Elevating means for sorting tables



Aug. 11, 1925.

D. PARKER ELEVATING MEANS FOR SORTING TABLES Filed Aug. 28, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet l Zven i 011 www D. PARKER ELEVATING MEANS FOR SORTING TABLES Aug. 11, l192s..

'2 Sheets-Shadi; 2

Filed Aug. 28, 19215 Patented Aug. l1, 1925.A

PATENT OFFICE.

DONALD PARKER, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

ELEVATING MEANS FOR SORTING TABLES.

Application filed August 28, 1923. Serial No. 659,749.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, DONALD PARKER, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, haveV invented certain new and usefull Improvements in Elevating Means for Sortin Tables, of which the following is a speci cation.

The present invention relates to elevating means for use in connection with roller bed sorting tables employed in connection with the handlinrr of boxes of filled fruit to be sorted. In this type of sorting tables the filled boxes o f fruit to be sorted are .successively advanced over the roller bed of the sorting table and brought to sorting stations of the sorting table which are arranged at spaced intervals on one or both sides of the table throughout the length thereof. At

each sorting -station thereis arranged adjacent the side walls -of the table a longitudinally disposed idler roller, over which roller the boxes of filled fruit are drawn onto the sorting stations as the boxes are laterally withdrawn from the roller bed of the sorting table, it being required that .the

sorter raise the boxes of filled fruit clear of the roller bed of the sorting table in order to place the same onto the longitudinally disposed roller over which the boxes aredrawn and moved from the roller bed l.of the sorting table onto the sorting station. The sorters are thus required to lift the weight of the filled box, thus placing a somewhat heavy load onto the sorters.

The object of the present invention is to provide meansV whereby the boxes of filled fruit when positioned `at a sorting station, may be easily and expeditiously raised a slight distance above the plane of the transversely disposed rollersconstituting the roller bed of the sorting table and positioned for free and easy withdrawal onto the longitudinally disposedrollers situated adjacent each sorting station, said elevating means serving as roller feed for aiding or assisting in the lateral withdrawal of the boxes of filled fruit and to support and carry the weight thereof, whereby the sorters situated at t e sorting stations are relieved of the necessity of hfting the weight of the filled boxes. 1 I

To comprehend the present invention reference should be had to the accompanying sheet of dra-wings wherein- Fig. 1 is a plan view partly broken away of an ordinary conventional type of a roller bed sorting table, with the present invention applied thereto at the respective sorting stations.

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional elevation taken on the line 2 2, Fig. l of the drawings, the position of the elevating means when in aised position being disclosed in dotted mes.

In the drawings, the numeral l designates any suitable form of a frame structure for the sorting 4table and 2 the transversely disposed rolle-rs arranged therein and constituting the roller bed of the sorting table. At spaced intervals along one or both sides of the sorting table is arranged an aligned series of sorting stations at which is adapted to be positioned a sorter for the filled boxes of unsortod fruit. Adjacent eachsorting stati-on and mounted within suitable bearing brackets 5 are longitudinally disposed rollers 6, over which rollers the boxes of filled fruit are withdrawn laterally fromthe roller bed of the sorting table onto the platforms of the sorting stations. Secured at each sorting station to the frame of the sorting table there is locatcda bracket 7 the lower extension of which is swung inwardly to a position beneath the roller bed of the sorting table. To ,each of these brackets is pivoted in the present case a foot actuated lever 8, which. at its free inner end carries a short longitudinally disposed shaft 9, upon the ends ofwhich shaft are mounted for free rotation and in spaced relation the elevating rollers 10. These rollers are located beneath the roller bed of the sorting tablefand are so positioned with respect to the transversely disposed rollers thereof as to move between said rollers when thrown in elevated position by depressing the lever 8,the upward l movement of the rollers 10 being such that the same when in elevated position have the and when it is desired by the sorterito re- 'move .the box ofiilled' fruitfrom off theroller 'bed ofthesaid-tableonto asorting1 platform, the leverfS is depressed, which 'raises Athe rollers-l() between. the rollers of brought to 'Lbear 'b nto the freely mounted .1

rollers' 10. The operator 'is then only requiredgto exert a' slightpulling strain onto the-boxes; l1- of filled fruit which causes the same'to ride overthe rollers 10 vonto the lon'.-

gitudinallv'disposed delivery ,roller 6 .over

which the box moves 'Cinto -thejsorting table or platform 12, the operator. thus being relieved ofthe necessity of bodily lifting the weight of the filled. boxestoplace the same from the roller bed ofthe sorting'table onto the transversely disposedroller 6..' l

Y While I .have disclosed a foot actuated-lever 8 for4 controlling the raisingof the ele-' `vating rollers-IO, 'it 'is obvious-t-that any means may be utilized for this purpose and I therefore do not wish to be u nderstood as restricting the actuating means to a foot operating leverand while theinwardlyl4 ex` g tendedportion of the actuating, lever'y 8' ters minates in a forked or yokebearing extension for' the shaft of the 'rollers :10, any other 'desired form may b'eA employed for supportu ing the said rollers.

`The inventionl has beenv described. in itsl preferred embodiment of coopera-ting d`etails of construction, but'3I do notzwishto "be understood asllimiting or'restric'tingthe invention as described td the details of4 con- I longitudinally disposed roller positioned at each sortingstation Afor receivingthe-said,

struction, but wish to'be Vunderstood .asf

jclaiming the invention'asbr'oadly as the state of the art' will warrant,` the said invention residing 'A in box elevating means Aadapted tofbe throwninto an elevated pos1' tion in order to. raise alilled box of iunsorted fruit above the-plane of the roller bed of the sorting .table and to serve as means for aiding and `assisting the move-f ment, of the box from the roller bedonto the box of fruit and advancing the same from the sorting table onto the sorting platforms. Having thus described my invention, l what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. The combination of a roller bed runway provided at spaced points throughout its lengthy with material withdrawal stations, a material supporting roller at each withdrawal station disposed in proximity to the ends of the bed rollers at the station and at substantially right angles thereto, means ,for elevating the material from the roller bed runway at each withdrawal sta. tion, .each vmeans including a pair of disks mounted to rotate on an axis parallel with '.th'at of the roller at each withdrawal station, means for mounting said disks normally below the surfaceof the roller bed runl way, and a manually connected lever associatedwithi said mounting means for guidling the same to project said disks upwardly -between the rollers of said runway with their periphery above the surface of the bed v'a material supporting roller atyeach withdraw-al' station disposed in proximity to the 4ends'of the bed rollers at the station and at substantiallyright angles ithereto, means for elevating the material from the roller bed runway? at each withdrawal station, each .means including'a rollermounted to rotate n an axis parallel with that of the roller at each withdrawal station, a pivot'ally mounted frame supporting each roller and norvmallyJ disposing the same with its periphery below the surface of the bed, a pedal de- ,pending from each frame and. adapted for actuation to project the elevating roller up-l v wardly between adjacent rollers of the bed vvih its peripheryabove thesurface of the e In 'testimony whereof I have signed my name to this speciiicatio'n.

' DONALD PARKER. 

